Canon-Mac grads Bryan and Bane unite playing for the Riveters
Sabrina Bryan and Lily Bane never thought they would play together.
They played in two different eras of Canon-McMillan girls soccer.
Bryan led the Big Macs to a state title in 2016, while Bane recently completed her high school career.
With their difference in age it’s understandable why the thought of being teammates seemed unlikely.
That was until the creation of the Pittsburgh Riveters was announced last summer.
Bryan, 26, and Bane, 18, are playing for the Riveters in their inaugural season in the USL W, a pre-professional league.
“Yeah, we never really thought this was going to be a possibility,” Bryan said. “Being so far apart in age and playing together is pretty cool.”
Bane is a midfielder and Bryan plays striker for the Riveters.
The opportunity has allowed the two former Big Macs to get to know each other, while playing competitive soccer.
“There’s no other place that I’d have the opportunity to play with Sabrina,” Bane said. “She’s a great role model and someone to look up to.”
Waynesburg grad Ashlyn Basinger, who’s playing in college at Cincinnati, and South Fayette goalkeeper Caitlyn Thompson are also on the team.
Bryan first learned about the Riveters from an Instagram post shortly after the unveiling of Pittsburgh’s USL W team at a Pittsburgh Riverhounds game last May.
She hadn’t played organized soccer since completing an All-American career at Hofstra and has been an assistant coach at South Fayette for a few years.
But this was an opportunity Bryan knew she wanted to pursue.
Bryan trained with the Riverhounds U18 Academy team for several months to get back into game shape.
“I always knew I wanted to get back into soccer,” Bryan said. “Every day I was coaching those girls (at South Fayette), I was so jealous of them, because I wanted to be back on the field.”
She’s proven she still has it. Bryan has three goals and an assist.
“It’s nice to know that I can still play at this level,” Bryan said. “I’m not sure what’s after this, whether it’s playing or just coaching, but I have that confidence now. With coaching I can take so much of what I’ve learned and give it to my high school team. Either way it’s a win-win for me.”
Riveters coach Scott Gibson appreciates Bryan’s presence as a steady leader.
“Sabrina was on one of our first academy teams,” Gibson said. “She’s only 26, but in terms of these girls, she brings veteran leadership. In one game she played up top with Anna Korney, who’s 15 years old. Anna’s in the academy and Sabrina came through our academy, so that was pretty cool.”
Bane came to the Riverhounds academy in November before joining the Riveters. She has enjoyed the step up in competition playing with older players. It’s given her good experience for when she heads to Purdue in the fall to start her college career.
“I was in the academy for about six months when Scott asked me to come be a part of the Riveters,” Bane said. “I was really excited for the opportunity to get to represent the academy at a higher level. It’s been great.
“A lot of the girls I’m playing with and against have so much college experience. The speed of play was probably the biggest change and the attention of detail needed is much different.”
Bane provides a physical presence in the midfield and Gibson praised her for her business-like approach to her training.
“She’s a great character with a wicked left foot,” Gibson said. “She’s a big, strong player that’s ready to go on to play at the college level. She’ll come back year after year and keep getting better and better.”
The Riveters have their final home game at Highmark Stadium on Friday against Steel City FC. A win will clinch a division title and playoff spot. They can get into the postseason in other ways, but a win is the easiest path. They beat Steel City FC 3-1 in the first meeting.
The crowds at Riveters games have been strong. The first game was sold out and another big crowd is expected Friday.
“We have the opportunity to thank our fans and this is a way to show them why they supported us all season,” Bryan said. “We’re a great team and we’re going to go out there and prove that and hopefully clinch a (playoff) spot at home.”